“Even at the third-rate schools to which Gordon was sent nearly all the boys were richer than himself. They soon found out his poverty, of course, and gave him hell because of it. Probably the greatest cruelty one can inflict on a child is to send it to school among children richer than itself. AContinue reading “RKS British Literature: One Great Cruelty One Can Inflict on a Child (George Orwell)”
Tag Archives: RKS British Literature
RKS British Literature: Lorenheim the Lizard Like Lodger (George Orwell)
“On the second floor lived Lorenheim, a dark meagre lizard-like creature of uncertain age and race who made about thirty-five shillings a week by touting vacuum cleaners. Gordon always went hurriedly past Lorenheim’s door. Lorenheim was one of those people who have not a single friend in the world and who are devoured by lustContinue reading “RKS British Literature: Lorenheim the Lizard Like Lodger (George Orwell)”
RKS British Literature: Never Fat Just Stout (George Orwell)
“He was really horribly fat. He filled his trousers as though he had been melted and then poured into them. But of course, like other fat people, he never admitted to being fat. No fat person ever uses the word ‘fat’ if there is any way of avoiding it. ‘Stout’ is the word they use-orContinue reading “RKS British Literature: Never Fat Just Stout (George Orwell)”
RKS British Literature: Moneyless Unlovables (George Orwell)
“Money, once again; all is money. All human relationships must be purchased with money. If you have no money, men won’t care for you, women won’t love you; won’t, that is, care for you or love you the last little bit that matters. And how right they are after all! For, moneyless you are unlovable.”Continue reading “RKS British Literature: Moneyless Unlovables (George Orwell)”
RKS British Literature: A Frustrated Writer Blames Lack of Creativity on Lack of Money (George Orwell)
“Dull-eyed he gazed at the wall of books. He hated the whole lot of them. Old and new, highbrow and lowbrow, snooty and chirpy. The mere sight of them brought home to him his own sterility. For here he was supposedly a ‘writer’, and he couldn’t even write. It wasn’t merely a question of notContinue reading “RKS British Literature: A Frustrated Writer Blames Lack of Creativity on Lack of Money (George Orwell)”
RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part Three) (Thomas De Quincey)
“Thus, for instance, opium, like wine, gives an expansion to the heart and the benevolent affections; but then with this remarkable difference, that in the sudden development of kind heartedness which accompanies inebriation, there is always more or less of a maudlin character which exposes it to the contempt of the bystander. Men shake theirContinue reading “RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part Three) (Thomas De Quincey)”
RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part Two) (Thomas De Quincey)
“But still, wine constantly leads a man to the brink of absurdity and extravagance, and, beyond a certain point, it is sure to volatize and to disperse the intellectual energies: whereas opium always seems to compose what has been agitated, and to concentrate what had been distracted. In short, to sum up all in oneContinue reading “RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part Two) (Thomas De Quincey)”
RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part One) (Thomas De Quincey)
“But the main distinction is this, that whereas wine disorders the mental faculties, opium, on the contrary (if taken in a proper manner), introduces amongst them the most exquisite order, legislation, and harmony. Wine robs a man of his self-possession; opium greatly invigorates it. Wine unsettles and clouds the judgement, and gives a preternatural brightness,Continue reading “RKS British Literature: A Comparison of Opium and Wine (Part One) (Thomas De Quincey)”
RKS British Literature: Natural Courage and a Sudden Influx of Money (Thomas De Quincey)
“…that vast power and possessions make a man shamefully afraid of dying: and I am convinced that many of the most intrepid adventurers, who by fortunately by being vey poor, enjoy the full use of their natural courage, would, at the very instant of going into action news were brought to them that they hasContinue reading “RKS British Literature: Natural Courage and a Sudden Influx of Money (Thomas De Quincey)”
RKS British Literature: The World as a Stage is Badly Cast (Oscar Wilde)
“Actors are so fortunate. They can choose whether they will appear in tragedy or in comedy, whether they will suffer or make merry, laugh or shed tears. But in real life it is different. Most men and women are forced to perform parts for which they have no qualifications. Our Guildensterns play Hamlet for us,Continue reading “RKS British Literature: The World as a Stage is Badly Cast (Oscar Wilde)”
